DOVER, Del. - House Bill 49, which would increase the maximum weekly benefit amount of unemployment compensation from $400 to $450 a week, was passed Wednesday. The funds needed to pay this increase will come from the Unemployment Trust Fund and the Delaware Division of Unemployment Insurance.
The maximum weekly benefit amount was last increased in 2019, when it was $330. Representative Ed Osienski from District 24 sponsored the bill and said raising the benefit to $450 per week would bring it closer to Maryland's weekly benefit amount of $430 and narrow the gap with Pennsylvania's $605.
“The unemployment benefit provides a vital lifeline to residents who find themselves out of work due to no fault of their own," said Osienski. "The bills don’t stop coming in, even if the pay does, and this benefit helps keep food on the table and utilities turned on while a person searches for a new job." Osienski also said that boosting the maximum weekly benefit will help offset cost-of-living increases experienced since the benefit was last raised.
Delaware's weekly benefit amount provides income replacement based on a target rate of 56%. Increasing the weekly maximum to $450 will provide individuals who would earn up to $41,491 annually an income replacement equivalent to this 56%. People who would earn more than that will receive less than 56% of their weekly wage, and those who would earn less than that would receive less than the maximum weekly amount.
According to Osienski, the bill would also provide temporary relief to employers who pay unemployment tax assessments by reducing the new employer tax rates, reducing or holding constant overall employer tax rates, and reducing the maximum earned rate. The Department of Labor estimates that these unemployment tax assessment changes will reduce the tax obligation of employers by $50 million in 2023.
Senator Jack Walsh from District 9 is the lead Senate sponsor of the bill and said that House Bill 49 would increase the maximum benefit amount payable to individuals seeking unemployment benefits without putting "undue burden" on the business owners supplementing these costs.
The next step for House Bill 49 is consideration by the Senate.